Women now occupy three most senior roles in Norway’s government

When she takes up her role as foreign minister Eriksen Søreide will join Prime Minister Erna Solberg and finance minister Siv Jensen in government

Molly Fleming
Saturday 21 October 2017 09:53 BST
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Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg
Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg

Norway’s three most senior cabinet roles are now all occupied by women.

In a cabinet reshuffle yesterday it was announced that Ine Eriksen Søreide, 41, will become the country’s first female foreign minister.

She joined Prime Minister Erna Solberg and finance minister Siv Jensen, meaning that three women occupy the top three government jobs.

“We’re not the first in the world but it is a page in Norway’s history that is being written,” Ms Solberg told a press conference.

Ms Søreide has served as defence minister since 2013 when the conservative right won a narrow victory in elections.

She will replace Børge Brende, who last month was appointed as president of the World Economic Forum.

The politician has been an active member of Norway's Conservative party since university but previously worked as a local TV producer and lawyer before eventually moving into a career in politics.

She will be replaced by Frank Bakke-Jensen, who is currently minister of EEA and EU affairs.

Norway is renowned for prioritising gender equality. In 2016, the country was ranked third in the the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report.

However, The Philippines, Switzerland and Liberia have already got a similar political makeup.

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